Eerie

“He gave me wings but did not give me flight…”

He gave me wings but didn’t give me flight. He gave me eyes but didn’t give me sight. He gave me a heart to see from inside.

As I sit on the cold floor eating bread crumbs, he watches me as he sits on the wooden chair with a plastic cushion. He is reading the newspaper. I wonder what is going on in the outside world.

When he is finally asleep, I gather my courage and run to the door. I run as fast as I can. I can see the moonlight beckoning to me. I am almost there. And then I am out the door that was somehow left open. Did he forget to close it? I am running on the outside pavement. I see the river with the moonlit path. I have wings, I can use them now. I begin to soar over the river. I am flying freely but then the shackle weighs heavy. I hear the chain snap and hold me back. I can no longer fly. My ankle is bound by a long chain which is secured to a rail inside my prison. How could I forget I was chained? The way I’m pulling and rattling it has probably shaken the metal bar and awakened him. It always ends like this. Like a dream that replays itself over and over again.

Sometimes I see the gate ajar and I run for it. But before I reach it, the chain around my ankle is stretched to its length and rattles and I trip and fall on my face. Sometimes I run out successfully and fly just like this but when I’m over the river I feel my shackle pulling and I hear the chain. And then I’m sent falling into the cold dark waters. I cannot swim, I have wings. When he reaches me he’s never mad. He just laughs at me, truly amused that I have failed. Truly amused that I have tried. Was this a game to him? I wasn’t sure what it was. Could it be my life? I wasn’t sure.

“No one would accept you if you go out there.” He tells me time and time again. “You’re nothing but a freak to them. You should never look in the mirror.”

“You never let me look in the mirror. Why can’t I see myself?” I had asked him numerous times. He would hide the only hand mirror he owned from me. I had never seen myself. I had no idea who I was or what I looked like. I had no idea why I was there. I had no idea who he was either.

I managed to escape one day, I do not remember how. I think he is sleeping in the back room. I had seen where he put the key. And surprisingly it was in reach. I run for it and I unchain myself with the key. I run outside and fly over the dirty river. I walk through the harbor. I look at all the seagulls and flags and the old buildings in the distance. I enjoy the beautiful skyline view and I just want to keep walking. I walk out into the street and I see a yellow school bus. There are three kids sitting inside and they open the window to laugh at me.

I look up at them and wave at them. I had never seen other people before. They are quite interesting looking.

“What are you!?” Asks one of the boys.

I am astonished by the question. I don’t know how to answer.

“Are you blind?” The other boy who was eating an ice cream asks.

“No. I’m looking right at you.” I reply.

The third boy gasps in fright. “Is that a hole in your chest? Is that a giant eyeball on your heart looking at us!?”

The other guys notice and scream as they stare directly at me. I don’t understand why such an incredulous reaction. The boy throws the ice cream at me and I flinch.

“I thought the wings were fake but she’s really a strange creature!” The boys scream as they struggle to get off the bus. They are frightened beyond all reason and when they finally walk off, they hurdle together and run off panicking into the sunset. “Freak! Freak! Freak!” They scream. “What was that?”

I look after them wanting to cry. I feel hurt and confused but I don’t think I can cry. I look down at my open chest. “He gave me a heart to see from inside…” I whisper breathlessly. Why did I recite that line? Why do I know it?

“See, it’s as I said.” Suddenly he is there, towering over me and looking at me as though he told me so. “You’re nothing but a freak to them. Why did you come here?”

I want to cry but where would my tears drip from? What would I solve?

“Come.” He calls me with his hands outstretched. “Come. And see yourself. I will show you the mirror.”

And so I float off with him over the river and towards the lonely building. It is like a dream. I could never feel my body. I could never feel my feet touching the floor. But I was certain that I was breathing. The only thing I could feel was my breath. And the only thing I was certain of was my existence.

As I stand in my usual spot on the cold floor, he chains my ankle again before handing me the mirror. “Go ahead. Look. But you won’t like what you see.”

I’m hesitant a moment, my hand is trembling uncontrollably. I had anticipated this moment for a long time but I couldn’t remember how long. I steady my hand and I gaze into the mirror. And then I gasp inwardly and let out a horrified and blood curdling wail. It is like nothing I have ever heard before. I drop that accursed object and it falls to the floor and shatters.

🩸🩸

Check out my channel for audio versions of my stories with my own voice acting. 😉

[embed]Jill Strike -Writer Welcome to my Writing/Storytelling channel!📝 I narrate stories I wrote with voice acting. And sometimes I will get…www.youtube.com